AAP increases pension reach by 80,000

BJP COUNTERS WITH COMPREHENSIVE ELDERLY COVERAGE

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AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Monday announced that an additional 80,000 people in Delhi are now eligible for old-age pensions, bringing the total number of beneficiaries to 5.3 lakh.

However, hours after the AAP announced the inclusion, the BJP countered it with a promise of comprehensive pension coverage on the demand for all elderly people if voted to power in the national capital, where elections are due early next year.

"When our government was formed in 2015, 3.32 lakh senior citizens were receiving pensions. Over the past nine years, we added 1.25 lakh beneficiaries. With 80,000 more, 5.3 lakh senior citizens now benefit," Kejriwal said during a press conference.

The Delhi government also launched a dedicated portal on Sunday for elderly citizens to apply for pensions. According to Kejriwal, 10,000 applications have already been received.